These Findings on Workplace Weight Discrimination Will Shock You

It's no secret that people, especially women, get judged unfairly due to negative weight-based stereotypes. One Vanderbilt study found that overweight and obese women—but not men—made less money than those in the weight range considered healthy. But a new study from the University of Strathclyde found something truly shocking: Even women within the "normal" BMI range face size discrimination at work.

The study, published in PLOS One, had 120 people rate how suited different women and men were to customer-facing jobs—like waiting tables—and behind the scenes ones, like working in kitchens, based on photos that were edited to display the same people at different weights.

People rated even women on the higher end of the "normal" range as less qualified than thinner ones, especially for customer-facing jobs. In fact, these women faced more bias than overweight men.

"These results affirm that even a marginal increase in weight appears to have a negative impact on the hireability ratings of female job applicants," the study reads. "For women, it seems, even seemingly minute changes to the shape, size and weight of the body are important."

Lead author Dennis Nickson side in a press release that, based on these results, companies should educate their employees—particularly those responsible for hiring decisions—on sensitivity and workplace bias. "Ethically," he added, "the results of the study are deeply unsettling from the viewpoint of gender inequality in the workplace, highlighting the unrealistic challenges women face against societal expectations of how they should look."